Box Score
BROOKLYN HEIGHTS, N.Y. - During the Manhattan College women's basketball team's preseason trip to Canada, Monica Roeder (Marlton, N.J.) showed flashes of brilliance, scoring 20 points in two of the three games. Two and a half months later in her first official collegiate game, Roeder did it again, going 7-for-12 from the field and 6-for-7 from three-point range to put up a game-high 20 points, as the Lady Jaspers (1-0) opened the 2010-11 campaign with a 63-34 victory over St. Francis (NY) (0-1) at the Pope Physical Education Center on Friday night.
"Monica made it look effortless," Head Coach John Olenowski said.
Autumn Lau scored 11 points in the first seven minutes to put the Terriers up 11-8 before back-to-back Roeder treys, then another by Lindsey Loutsenhizer (North Huntingdon, Pa.), gave the Lady Jaspers a 17-11 lead. Manhattan held St. Francis (NY) to just one point over the final 13:06 of the period and took a 23-12 advantage into the locker room.
A pair of Amber Lau layups trimmed the Terriers' deficit to 10, 26-16, early in the second half, but the Lady Jaspers used a 21-1 run over the next 8:04 to open up a 30-point advantage, 47-17. Manhattan's lead reached a game-high 35 points when a Maggie Blair (Briarcliff, N.Y.) three-pointer made it 63-28 with 1:29 left. St. Francis (NY) added two late treys to cut the final margin to 63-34.
"This was a solid team effort," Olenowski said. "We ran the offense well and played great pressure defense in the second half, which really changes the complexion of the game."
Roeder led four Lady Jaspers in double figures. Schyanne Halfkenny (Hyde Park, Mass.) and Blair each had 11 points to set a career-high, while Loutsenhizer also tallied 11 points. Loutsenhizer and Abby Wentworth (Portland, Maine) both grabbed a game-high seven rebounds, as the Lady Jaspers outrebounded the Terriers 41-37. Wentworth also had five of Manhattan's 17 assists. The Lady Jaspers shot 37.9 percent (22-of-58) from the field, 57.1 percent (12-of-21) from three-point range, and 46.7 percent (7-of-15) at the free throw line.
Save a three-pointer at the buzzer, Autumn Lau was held in check after her early flurry. She led St. Francis (NY) with 14 points and five rebounds. No other Terrier scored more than five points, and Kim Snauwaert and Tiara Dunson each registered five boards. St. Francis (NY) shot 27.3 percent (12-of-44) from the field, including 18.5 percent (5-of-27) from downtown, and 38.5 percent (5-of-13) at the charity stripe.
The Lady Jaspers go from Brooklyn to Queens for their next game, a 7 p.m. showdown at No. 14/16 St. John's (1-0) on Tuesday night. St. John's topped Marist, 64-50, in its season opener on Friday night.
NOTES: Manhattan and St. Francis (NY) played each other in the season opener for the third straight season...It was the Lady Jaspers' 13th consecutive win over the Terriers...Manhattan improved to 2-0 in season openers under Olenowski...The Lady Jaspers moved to 18-15 all-time in season openers, and won their first game for the third successive year...Roeder became the first freshman to start the opener since Wentworth, who made her collegiate debut against Seton Hall on Nov. 9, 2007...Blair also made her first collegiate start on Friday night...Blair's previous career-high was 10 points against Niagara on March 5, 2010, while Halfkenny tallied nine points against Maryland Eastern Shore on Nov. 22, 2009...Every player on the roster logged at least one minute of action.
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